Domestic appliance



March 27, 1962 J, w. JACOBS DOMESTIC APPLIANCE Filed Feb. 26, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Il'" [I um .40 65 70 .7! fl I 1;! 6 "I f n mi" .72 H I J/ I l 55 i y M" mm R JIII I llllIlHlIHJ] 9 62 i0 I 90 L 'l/////// W .74 INVENTOR.

James llf. Jacobs 2? BY H15 A TOR EY March 27, 1962 .1. w. JACOBS 3,026,815

DOMESTIC APPLIANCE Filed Feb. 26, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. Z4

Jazz/e5 hf. Jacobs BY HIS ATTO EY nited rates atent 3,925,8l Patented Mar. 27, M52

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3,026,815 DOMESTIC APPLIANCE James W. Jacobs, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich a corporation of Delaware Filed Feb. 26, 1958, Ser. No. 717,639 3 Claims. (Cl. 103-218) This invention relates to a dishwasher and more particularly to an improved mounting arrangement for attaching a pump-motor assembly to a dishwasher tub.

In the manufacture of domestic appliances it is desirable to utilize simple methods of assembling the component parts. The attachment of a pump or motor to a dishwasher must be reliable and easily effected to assure a long, trouble-free life for the appliance. In addition to these general concepts, the operation of a dishwasher should be comparatively quiet and relatively vibrationfree. These aims require a connecting arrangement between the moving and stationary parts of the dishwasher which is sturdy and yet capable of absorbing operational vibrations.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved mounting arrangement for a pumpmotor assembly to the washing chamber of a dishwasher.

It is a more specific object to provide a resilient connection between a dishwasher and its pump-motor assembly.

It is a further object to provide a mounting arrangement whereby the pump-motor assembly is quickly attached to and supported from the drain outlet opening of a dishwasher tub.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view, with parts broken away, showing the pump-motor assembly supported from a dishwasher tub;

FIGURE 2 is an exploded view of the pump-motor assembly mounting components;

FIGURE 3 is a side sectional view of the assembled pump-motor assembly mounting components.

In accordance with this invention, and with reference to FIG. 1, a dishwasher having a front loadingaccess door 12 and a tub sump or depressed bottom portion 14 is provided with a vertically arranged pump-motor assembly 16. The pump-motor assembly 16 is disposed relative to the internal plumbing of the dishwasher to connect with a two-way valve 17 and selectively direct water to a conduit leading to the washing chamber or to a drain 22. The two-way valve 17 is actuated by a solenoid 24. Supporting the pump-motor assembly 16 from the depressed bottom portion or sump 14 is the novel mounting arrangement, shown generally at 26.

Reference may now be had to FIG. 2 wherein an exploded view of the mounting assembly serves to depict the various component parts. The mounting assembly is comprised of a dishwasher sump 14-, a pump mounting clamp, spider bracket, or connecting piece 28, an annular gasket or seal 30, pump mounting studs or fastening means 32, a pump housing 18 and a prime mover or motor 34.

The dishwasher sump 14 is formed with an annular shoulder portion 36 which may serve to support a strainer (not shown). The lowermost part of the sump 14- terminates in a drain opening 38. Defining the opening 38 is a depending cylindrical collar 40 which is flared outwardly at its lower terminus to form a downwardly sloped annular ledge 42.

Adapted to overlie the outlet collar 40 is the pump mounting clamp or bracket 28. The clamp 28 is preferably cast to the desired configuration but may be fabricated from metal of suitable strength. Where the clamp 28 is cast, it is generally desirable to provide depressions or lightening grooves 58 to decrease the weight of the clamp member 28. In forming the bracket, an opening 44 is sized in a manner to pass over the largest diameter of the outlet ledge 42. The opening 44 is formed with an upper cylindrical section 46 and a lower radially outwardly sloped section 48. When the opening 44 is assembled over the collar 40 of the sump 14 it will be seen that clamp opening section 46 is complementary to depending collar 40, while clamp sloping section 48 is similarly related to the outlet ledge 42. This arrangement serves to effect a reliable water seal which will be more fully explained hereinafter. Projecting radially from the clamp 23 are three pump housing supporting arms 50, 52, and 54. Each of these support arms is formed with similar open slotted hook portions 56 at the outer terminus of each arm. In order to assure correct positioning of the pump-motor assembly 15 with relation to the dishwashing sump 14, the arms are formed of different lengthsarm 50 being the shortest, arm 54 the longest, and arm 52 intermediate thereof. The difierent lengths of the support arms are dictated by the outer peripheral configuration of the volute pump housing which spirals outwardly toward the pump outlet.

The gasket or seal member 30 has the two-fold function of liquid sealing while providing a sturdy connec tion between the vibrating pump-motor assembly 16 and the stationary dishwasher sump 14. The seal 3:0 may be molded of any resilient material and is formed with an upstanding annular collar 60, an annular outward clamp support ledge 62, a radially inner cylindrical liquid sealing section 64 and a drain outlet ledge receiving slot 66. The seal or gasket 30 is adapted to overlie the depending outlet collar 40 of the sump 14. In so doing, the radially inner side of the upstanding collar 6t? lies in juxtaposition with depending tub outlet collar 4! The clamp opening 44 is correctly sized to slip over the radially outer diameter of the upstanding seal collar 60.

The pump-motor assembly 16 is comprised of a pump housing 18 enclosing an impeller 33, a motor 34 for rotating the impeller and a liquid sealing gasket 68. Retaining the gasket 68 in sandwiched relationship are two juxtaposed annular flanges 89 on the pump housing 13 and 90 on the motor 34. The pump 18 and motor 34 are held in assembled relationship by a novel pump mounting stud 32, to be explained more fully next following. Formed also on the housing 18 is an inlet collar 70 which extends vertically upwardly in complementary relation to the downwardly extending sump outlet collar 40. The pump housing 18 is of conventional volute configuration wherein the fluid passageway increases in size as it spirals outwardly toward the outlet portion of the pump. For this reason, the flange 89 lies about the outer periphery of the pump housing in eccentric relationship to the pump inlet collar 70. The different lengths of clamp arms 50, 52 and 54 accommodate this eccentric relationship.

The double-ended pump mounting stud 32 will best be understood with reference to FIG. 3. A dual purpose is served by stud 32, one end serving to assemble the pump housing 18 to the motor 34 while the other end 82 secures the pump-motor assembly 16 to the dishwasher sump 14-. Lower end 89 of stud 32 is threaded and merged into a shoulder 84 in the central portion of the stud 32. Similarly, the upper end 82 is threaded and merges into a second shoulder 86 of the stud 32. A nut 38 is adapted to threadably engage the stud end 82 while the motor flange 0 has a tapped opening 92 to threadably receive the stud end 80. To effect an assembled pump-motor relationship, the outer peripheral flange S9 of the pump housing 18 carries three ports 94 having a slightly larger diameter than the stud ends 80 but of lesser diameter than stud shoulders 84. A look washer 96 interposed between pump flange 89 and stud shoulders 84 serves to complete the fastening arrangement of the pump housing to the motor by stud 32. It is thus seen that three studs 32 serve to assemble the outer peripheral flanges 89, 90 of the pump housing and the motor, respectively, while presenting their clamp engaging ends 82 longitudinally upwardly for engagement with the sump mounted components described next following.

In completing the attachment of the pump-motor assembly to the dishwasher sump 14, the pump mounting clamp 28 is first slipped over the depending sump opening ledge 42. Next, the seal 30 is slipped over the outlet collar 40 in a manner which places seal slot 66 in a position to receive the outlet ledge 42. The pump mounting clamp 28 then falls into place and is securely held by the enlarged peripheral section 62 of the seal which is of greater diameter than the clamp opening section 46. Before fitting the pump inlet 79 within the liquid seal section 64, the clamp 28 is placed so that clamp support arms 50, 52 and 54 repose adjacent their respective mounting stud segments 82. A slight rotational motion of the mounting clamp will thus engage the terminal hook portions 56 with the mounting stud segments 82 and the pump-motor assembly can be suspended from the stud nuts 88. The fastening means or nuts 88 on each of the upwardly extending clamp receiving stud sections 82 may then be tightened to draw the pump-motor assembly into liquid sealing relationship with the sump outlet opening 38. It will now be evident that upstanding collar 60 of seal member 30 acts to cushion any vibration transmitted from the motor through the mounting clamp 28. Furthermore, the seal section 64 upon being compressed by the tightening of nuts 88 effectively eliminates any leakage from the dishwasher sump 14 around the connection with the pump inlet 70.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, as may come within the scope of the claims which follows.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. In a combination, an arrangement for mounting a pump'motor assembly to the sump outlet of a dishwasher comprising a motor housing; a pump housing having an irregular peripheral flange forming a volute and a central pump inlet defined by an upstanding collar concentric with said inlet; an annular seal member having a resilient support portion and a seal portion, said support portion adapted to overlie the outside of said outlet, and said seal portion adapted to be between the inside of said outlet and said upstanding collar; a clamp having three radially extending arms and an aperture circumscribing said seal support portion, each of said arms extending outwardly for different lengths respectively in accordance with said irregular peripheral flange and having a terminal hook segment, each of said terminal hook segments including a slot facing in the same respective direction on each arm; three studs having upper and lower threaded sections and a shoulder portion interposed therebetween, said lower sections connecting said pump housing in sandwiched relationship between said shoulder portion and said motor housing and said upper sections relatively rotatably engaging said hook segments in said slots; and fastening means threadedly connected to said upper sections for drawing said upstanding collar into liquid sealing relation to said sump outlet.

2. In combination, an arrangement for mounting a pump-motor assembly to the tub outlet of a dishwasher comprising a motor housing having a first peripheral flange; a pump housing having a second peripheral flange and having an inlet and a collar around said inlet; a seal member having a resilient support portion and a seal portion, said support portion adapted to overlie the outside of said outlet, and said seal portion adapted to be between the inside of said outlet and said collar; a spider having a plurality of radially extending arms and an aperture eircumscribing said seal support portion, said arms having open slotted hook segments; a plurality of unitary studs having upper and lower sections axially parallel to the axis of said inlet, said lower sections extending through said second flange and engaging said first flange for connecting said pump housing to said motor housing to form said pump-motor assembly and said upper sections engaging said open slotted hook segments; and fastening means threadedly connected with said upper sections for drawing said collar into liquid sealing relation to said tub outlet.

3. In combination, an arrangement for mounting a pump-motor assembly to the Sump outlet of a washer comprising a motor housing; a pump housing having a central pump inlet and an upstanding collar adjacent said inlet; an annular seal member having a support portion and a seal portion, said support portion adapted to be outboard of said outlet, and said seal portion adapted to be inboard of said outlet and outboard of said upstanding collar; a spider having a radially extending arm and an aperture circumscribing said seal support portion, said arm having a terminal hook segment; a unitary stud having an upper and lower threaded section, said lower section connecting said pump housing to said motor housing to form said pump-motor assembly and said upper section engaging said hook segment; and fastening means adjustably connected with said upper section for securing said upstanding collar in liquid sealing relation to said sump.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 722,757 Roekel Mar. 17, 1903 1,808,917 Bort June 9, 1931 2,380,735 Ebel et a1. July 31, 1945 2,442,812 Jordan June 8, 1948 2,449,052 Brown Sept. 14, 1948 2,463,251 Curtis Mar. 1, 1949 2,668,066 Stadelhofer Feb, 2, 1954 2,743,875 Brezosky et a1. May 1, 1956 2,745,417 Fielding May 15, 1956 2,785,864 Jordan Mar. 19, 1957 2,808,063 Abresch et a1. Oct. 1, 1957 2,846,154 Wieezorek Aug. 5, 1958 2,925,225 Jordon Feb. 16, 1960 

